ChipSeal sees coyotes. I occasionally see coyotes, too. These guys live in the same neighborhood I've seen coyotes in, and I often see them on the morning ride in to work, right around dawn. I've never seen them on the ride home, though I mainly ride this street on the way home when it's unusually hot out. I once saw a cat stalking them, but the cat quickly thought better of the scheme, once it noticed that each bird was bigger than the cat and there were five of them. There still ARE five of them. Four colored like this, and one that's white. They barely even noticed the cat.
The first time I saw the white one, I thought it was a turkey. Near as I can figure, these are domesticated guinea fowl. Anyone got another theory? Anybody see this kind of stuff when they're driving their car to work?
FRIDAY UPDATE. Check that statement about never seeing those birds on the way home. Today I took the hot day route home and there they were. So these guys like it cool and they like it hot. Partly I took the hot day route home to see if I couldn't snap a shot for Lyle of the local peacock that sometimes hangs out just a bit to the east, but both he and the zebra were out of sight.
As I went by these birds, the conflict between "must press on" and "get those birds in a jpg close up" urges caused a brief wobbly stretch until I decided the birds could wait for another day. They're just not in the same class as a hot peacock!
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7 comments:
Hey Steve, thanks for joining my blog list. Those look like guinea foul to me, and I see them occasionally biking around the country side in Indiana. They are pretty feisty critters, although I don't think they would be much of a match for coyotes. Bantams, especially the roosters (or banties), are about half the size of guineas with 4 times the aggression. Don't ever cross a banty!
Interesting looking birds. I have never seen anything like these before. I have seen some "Durkeys" aka "Tucks" (at least that's what my kid calls them), which look like a cross between a Turkey and a Duck.
Happy riding!
So, Big Oak, when are you gonna do a post on YOUR Tricross? I don't notice the birds being particularly aggressive, but maybe that's because I'm riding along the road which is not their turf. They do seem mildly interested when I cluck at them as I go by.
Chandra, we'll have to see a photo on these "Durkeys." Might they be some variety of geese?
"Chandra, we'll have to see a photo on these "Durkeys." Might they be some variety of geese?"
That would be my "geese" too!
Yeah, they are Guineas. Awesome for keeping the bug population in check, and esp. hard on ticks. Many folks up in Boise way keep them for that alone. They will take to the tree tops or rooftops at night to avoid predators, and they protect each other as a group. They do well around chickens but don't mix in with them.
I heard that people like these birds because they keep the snake population at bay.
My most interesting fowl sighting was a pea-hen, trailed by five little pea-chicks, crossing the road. I think they escaped from the zoo.
A couple of weeks ago, I was leading a group ride that encountered a turkey hen with her offspring. For babies, they were awfully big.
Last summer I got buzzed by a flock of turkeys on their way from one tree to the ground, across the road. I'm glad I missed them, but the bragging rights for "wierdest bike wreck" would have been worth something.
Do your Durkeys look like this? I'm told that's a Muscovy Duck.
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No Need for Non-Robot proof here!